Business Daily

John Laurenson reports from La Défense in Paris on how Europe's biggest business district is turning vacant office space into housing. As hybrid working leaves more offices underused, cities are rethinking the future of these buildings. We compare developments in Paris with efforts in London and Washington DC and ask whether converting offices into homes could help tackle housing shortages and revive struggling business districts.

Presenter/producer: John Laurenson

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(Picture: People walking in La Défense business district in Paris. Credit: John Laurenson)

Denmark is preparing to scrap its royal warrant system, ending a centuries-old royal seal of approval used by businesses to market everything from beer to cars. Similar warrants are used by monarchies around the world and awarded to everyone from brewers and carmakers to pest controllers. What do the Danish companies affected think, and could other royal households follow Denmark's lead?

(Photo: Packets of sweets with a Danish Royal Warrant in a Copenhagen shop. Credit: Daniel Rosney)

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Producer/presenter: Daniel Rosney

What is driving the global shift towards economic protectionism? Will Bain is joined by Jennifer Pak, NPR's China correspondent, and Trevor Simumba, an international business consultant in Zambia, to discuss why the trend has accelerated since Donald Trump's tariffs and why global trade remains resilient despite growing barriers. Plus, why Africa's Lobito Corridor matters for trade, what AI means for jobs in China and beyond, and why drinks giant Diageo is cutting costs. And, two food heroes: China's baozi and Uganda's matoke.

(Photo: A ship docks at Lobito Port in Angola, 4 December, 2024. Credit: Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters)

You can email the team: [email protected]

Presenter: Will Bain

In a highly unusual move, the US has stepped in to back Japan's currency, the yen. Donald Trump calls it a "signal of friendship" but what is Washington hoping to achieve? And what does the move reveal about Japan's economy, after years of deflation and ultra-low interest rates? Rahul Tandon and Will Bain assess the intervention with the help of the BBC's "yen geek" Mariko Oi.

Presenters: Rahul Tandon, Will Bain and Mariko Oi

You can email the team: [email protected]

(Picture: A woman walks past a stock market indicator board in Tokyo, Japan, 03 August 2026. Credit: EPA/Shutterstock)

Ola Sars has spent two decades helping shape the way music is discovered, streamed and licensed. He co-founded Beats Music, the streaming service that helped lay the groundwork for Apple Music, before launching Soundtrack, a company that provides licensed music to restaurants, cafés and other hospitality businesses. After moving to the US as a child and learning English from scratch, how did he become a music-tech entrepreneur? And was selling his stake in Beats before Apple acquired the company the right decision?

(Photo: Ola Sars, seen from the shoulders up, wears a black jumper and has short shaved brown hair going grey at the sides, blue eyes and stubble growth. He looks at the camera with a neutral expression. Credit: Rickard Croy)

Presenter: Leanna Byrne

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With Europe sweltering in intense heat and demand for air-conditioners soaring, who is making money from supplying them? We follow the supply chain from a factory churning out air-con units in China to retailers across Europe scrambling to secure stock as demand surges. In France, where repeated heat waves have driven sales higher, shoppers have been fighting in supermarkets to get hold of them.

We also examine the cost of powering air-conditioners and the impact their growing use is having on energy prices. How much pressure is Europe's growing appetite for air-conditioning putting on electricity grids?

(Photo: People cool off in the Trocadero fountain by the Eiffel Tower in Paris during a heatwave in June 2026. Credit: Yoan Valat/EPA/Shutterstock)

Presenter: Sam Fenwick  

In the second of two episodes, Ed Butler tracks the whereabouts and connections of one of Europe's most wanted drug criminals. Despite denials from the President's family, law enforcement agencies say Jos Leijdekkers is enjoying privileged status in Sierra Leone. The country's Justice Minister responds.

Is China rapidly catching up with the United States in the race to dominate artificial intelligence? Rahul Tandon is joined by Walter Todd in the US and Rebecca Choong Wilkins in Singapore to discuss, following a week of sharp moves in AI-related markets and growing questions over where the next wave of innovation will come from.

They also explore what India's "cockroach protest" says about the growing challenge of youth unemployment around the world.

(Photo: People walk past the Unix AI booth during the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai, China, 17 July, 2026. Credit: Go Nakamura/Reuters)

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Presenter: Rahul Tandon

This Podcast was first published June 9th 2026

With the future of football's governing body under discussion, we're giving you another chance to hear how FIFA makes most of its money from the World Cup

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has proposed the creation of a subsidiary body to run tournaments, which would include some outside investment.

Fifa has given all 211 member associations until 19 September to say whether they agree with the plan, with a straight majority to decide whether to proceed.

But there has been criticism of the plans over lack of clarity and the impact it could have on FIFA's independence.

Ahead of the World Cup, Sam Fenwick looked at how the event generates billions of dollars for FIFA - where the money comes from and how it gets spent.

Presenter: Sam Fenwick

(photo: Silhouette of Gianni Infantino, FIFA President and rising stock graph are seen in this illustration taken, July 28, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration)

This week, Will and Rahul speak to business correspondent Arunoday Mukharji in Delhi about how India's youth unemployment crisis helped force the resignation of the country's Education Minister and why it could mark a turning point for India's Gen‑Z. Exam leaks and a shortage of opportunities have sparked some of the biggest youth protests in years, raising difficult questions for the government. Nearly two-thirds of Indians are under 35, and more young people are graduating than ever before. But many can't find jobs. Can India create enough jobs for a generation with rising expectations? And what happens if it can't?

Presenters: Will Bain, Rahul Tandon and Arunoday Mukharji

You can email the team: [email protected]